Are your memories a match for your dreams?

Are your dreams bigger than your memories?My friend, Derek Petersen, a truly unique human being who lives with remarkable intention and purpose, triggered this question with a recent Facebook post.

While I do love the question, my mind immediately began to wonder: Which memories?

Memories are, always and by their very nature, cherry-picked. Once you get in the habit of telling the story of your awful childhood, your brain gladly delivers truckloads of examples to bolster that feeling. ("See, it's true!")

Conversely, if you begin thinking about - and savoring - moments of joy, deep friendship, and those special people who were there for you (even in the midst of disaster), your brain gladly delivers truckloads of examples to bolster that feeling - and we make it true.

The cool thing is, it's all true! Derek certainly benefited from some rock solid adults and Midwest values growing up. And... I know people who grew up in similar circumstances and think it was oppressive, mind-numbing, and responsible for much of their suffering, thank you very much!

Here's the point: I suspect that Derek's juicy life is not only an extension of his juicy memories, but that the memories he chooses to amplify are an extension of his dreams.

What if we all did that? What if we allowed ourselves to dream big dreams, then cherry-picked the memories that support those dreams? What if we amplified everything that has prepared us for those dreams, so that stepping across the chasm into our dreams feels like the next logical step?

And what if, along with asking if our dreams are bigger than our memories, we asked: